Potty Training: Phase 2

My son Xavier is daytime and #1 potty trained. I’ve highlighted my process with this in My 5 Steps for Potty Training Progress. We had some progress with those steps, but he didn’t really get it down until he stayed with my mother for a week over the summer. “Grandma Jeanie’s Boot Camp” is something that started after my niece and nephew were miraculously potty trained after a week with her. From what she told me she does everything as I did, but for some reason it just works for her. After that there were no more pull ups on long rides, and I don’t really have to ask him to go to the bathroom. If he needs it, he just goes. But now we are entering Phase 2, which is tackling the night time, nap, and the big #2!

For some reason at daycare he only has the occasional accident during nap time, she does not use pull ups. But at home he always wakes up wet. I limit his drinking an hour before and make him potty multiple times, but he still wakes up drenched. Night time wasn’t even a question; I was not ready to night time train him. With nap and night time training will come #2 training, because that’s the only time he poops. He waits until I put a pull up on him and deliberately poops before he falls asleep so he can get changed. I read a story, lay him down, say prayers, and turn off the light. In about 30 seconds he gets up and turns the light back on. He then proceeds to take every book off his bookshelf and several toys out. In about 5 minutes he’ll peep around the hallway and whisper “I pooped”. This was strategic, he is a bright child. He knows he does not want the poop on him in his sleep, so he does it before hand to be changed. I tried putting him on the potty right before bed, but he still refused to poop in it. You would think I’d have enough of this and decide right then and there to take the pull ups away, but I was not ready for all of that.

Fate would decide when the time came. Right after Christmas break we had a snow storm. Of course anyone from the North jokes about how everything shuts down in the south due to a little snow. We got 5-8 inches, which is a big deal for North Carolina. I could not get out of my apartment complex for 3 days. I didn’t realize we were running low on pull ups; we only had 3 left. If I wasn’t able to get out that day I would have enough because he uses 2 for nap and night time due to his scheduled poops. During nap time I used the expected 2, and then….I found a way out of that parking lot because I was not ready to clean pee and poop out of his bed.

I bought a small bag of pull ups because, I was not sure I wanted to commit to the jumbo box. I regretted it immediately. You see, my son is very large for his age. He will be 3 in March and is current 3 and 1/2 feet tall, and 40 pounds. Most people mistake him for 3,4, and sometimes 5. So the 4t-5t pull ups were on their last leg. He was often peeing out of them. I didn’t not want to pay the astronomical price for the “Under Jams” for big kids, so I decided this was it. After he finished this small pack we were going to finish potty training. I should’ve just stuck to my guns and started while we were snowed in, but I’m stubborn.

We are still working with this, but have had some success. He has his lunch and last beverage 2 hours before nap time, and 3 hours for bed time. After that I make him potty as many times as possible. He sits on the potty 10-15 watching poop in the potty videos before he lays down. He doesn’t poop in his underwear before nap time, but he does at night. He is showing remorse for it now. He doesn’t come and get us, but instead he cries in his room, waddling around. I’ve also started to put his character underwear on at night. If he poops or pees I tell him he made whatever character sad, because he pee’d or pooped on them. We have started to spank and give him a stern talking to when he does this, because he is capable of coming and telling us that he has to poop. I do feel bad about this a little, because I understand that for kids #2 is hard to do. There seems to be some kind of mental block that won’t allow him to let go and just do it in the potty. But, its ridiculous for him to just have been on the potty and plan to do it before falling asleep. It would be another story if it was done, accidentally while asleep. After he has his pooping out of the way if we wake him up during the night to pee he can have a dry night.

This is what I’m working with. If anybody has some pointers or suggestions, I’m all ears. I know this won’t happen overnight, but if it could that would be great. This is not a fun process for anybody involved. All of the extra washing clothes, and I not built for cleaning this grown man poop out of underwear.

Update: This just in, I had to stop writing this because, my son woke up crying and said he had to poop. I sat him on the potty and he did just that! We of course erupted in excitement and sang the “poo poo in the potty” song. Hopefully this is the start of him finally getting it down.

This is “Gma’s Boot Camp”. Thank God, He is getting it! Continue to have patience. He pooped in the potty once over the holidays when I got him up 1 hr after bedtime. He is smart, it will happen. You may need to get a pkg. of sheet protector until he gets it.

Yay! It’s hard to deal with but once they get it it’s such a relief! With my daughter I taught her in a week. We have chocolates if she peed or pooped. I also gave her stickers and if she didnt have an accident the whole day I took her to an indoor play place and that seemed to do it. I didn’t want to spend the money at the play places every time she did both a day so I started to take her to free mcdonalds or Burger King play places and she did very well. I now have another daughter and I’m really hoping she’ll be easy too. Usually kids look up to their siblings.

Yes I’ve heard a lot of people do the chocolate. And I’ll be trying it as well. But it’s actually only been a few days not quite a week so I think the progress we’ve seen is promising. Our mall has 2 free indoor play areas I’ll do that too. Thanks for the ideas.

Good luck! I’ve been through it with my older two, and my 1.5 year old will be there before I know it. It just takes persistence, rewards, and lots of praise. Plus determination and a willingness to do a lot of cleaning for a short period of time.

Yes, this was a process for both my kids. Around this same age I was a stay at home mom and I use to have them sit on the pot all throughout the day in front of the tv watching their favorite cartoons. They eventually would do #1 mostly so we made sure to celebrated those wins and #2 on themselves only during the day. However, it got to the point when we knew they knew better going #2 when they would pull the pull ups off. So unfortunately the hubby gave them one good spanking, which I think scared them to no return they started going in the pot and sitting on the toilet after that. Sad day it was for me, but it worked out in the end. Don’t give up it will be over soon enough!

Yea I’ve thought about it but I regularly get him those types of snacks so going poop in the potty for “regular” candy or cookies is a real motivator for him. It won’t be forever so I figure he won’t die from it.

Good luck – I’m really not looking forward to potty training my toddler (he’s still young at 20 months old and not verbal enough to be able to communicate at the moment.) Hope Xavier carries on doing well 🙂